


Really? THIS Place?

by Clint_and_Coffee



Category: Grimm (TV)
Genre: Hank has had enough of your shit, M/M, Nick is adorable, past Nick Burkhardt/Juliette Silverton - Freeform, so is Monroe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-25
Updated: 2017-08-29
Packaged: 2018-12-19 21:55:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11906988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clint_and_Coffee/pseuds/Clint_and_Coffee
Summary: "Haaannnkkk,""Oh for the love of God, Nick, what?!""I need coffeeeeeee.""Could you just hang on for like 5 minutes?""No.""Nick...""No.""Nick!""NO.""Alright, fine! But I'm choosing the place!"Nick beamed at his partner.ORNick is a cop who is addicted to coffee.Monroe has just opened up a quirky (it's not quirky, Rosalee, it's art!) coffee shop on the corner.Nick becomes a regular customer.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm a sucker for coffee shop aus so I had to write one. Enjoy!

"Haaannnkkk," Nick whined.

"Oh for the love of God, Nick, what?!" Nick smiled sweetly at Hank, hoping to break him down.

"I need coffeeeeeee." Hank sighed. They had this fight about 50 times a day. Couldn't he just wait until they got back to the precinct and get free coffee?

"Could you just hang on for like 5 minutes?"

"No."

"Nick..." Hank warned.

"No."

"Nick!"

"NO."

"Alright fine! But I'm choosing the place!" How did he always break him down like this?

Nick beamed at his partner.

X

"This is the place you chose?" Nick stared inquisitively at the shop and then at his partner. Hank smirked back.

"Hell yeah." Hank chuckled to himself. 'Maybe if he hates this place enough he'll stop pestering me about coffee all the damn time.' Hank thought to himself. Sighing, Nick pushed the door open and was immediately assaulted by a shit load of paintings with what can only be described as confused in their color scheme and an even more confusing arrangement of odd chairs and random pieces of furniture that definitely did not fit in. Huh.

"This place opened up a couple of days ago. Thought you might want a new regular spot." Hank grinned at Nick. Nick scowled back. What the hell was wrong with this place? It had no customers, no music and would have been totally silent if not for the incessant ticking of about a dozen clocks randomly placed around the shop. And no sign of an employee anywhere. What?

"Come on, man, let's just grab one from the precinct." Nick was pulling on Hank's arm towards the door when a cheery voice called out.

"Oh, hello! Sorry I was out back. Business has been quiet to start. What can I get for you gentlemen?" Nick looked at Hank who was trying to suppress a laugh. Dammit. He knew that Hank knew his good guy instinct would take over and buy something, anything, especially because of the massive, hopeful smile on the guy's face. His name tag read 'Monroe'. He was a rough around the edges looking guy and would have been slightly intimidating if not for the woollen jumper and blinding, child-like smile.

"Uh, yeah could I just get a black coffee and he'll have- "

"Triple shot filter. Milk on the side. Warm not cold." Hank always said he couldn't care less about what coffee he had, but always seemed to have a specific order whenever they bought from a shop. It pissed Nick off to high heavens.

"Coming right up." Monroe smiled at them. Nick could get used to that smile.

Monroe started to make their coffee in silence and it was just about killing Nick. He was never one for the quiet but the clocks were really setting him on edge, so he decided to strike up a conversation.

"So... uh, this is a rather... unusual set up." Nick commented. 'Smooth, reaalll smooth.' he thought to himself.

"Yeah," he shouted over his shoulder to them "I kinda decorated with a 'if I like it I'll buy it' mindset. Rosalee, an employee of mine calls it quirky. I call it expressionism."

"What, you don't like quirky?"

Monroe spun around with a look of horror on his face. "Quirky is an insult! It implies no thought or care being put into the outcome. I take pride in this shop's appearance thank you very much!" He suddenly looked dejected. "Even if no one else does." Nick's heart fell. The sad look on Monroe's face knocked all the wind out of him. He looked so broken! Nick had to do something.

"Well I for one love the look of this place!" Nick shouted. Hank looked at him quizzically out of the corner of his eye. 'Not a word, Hank. Not. A. Word,' If he had secret telepathic powers, then he hoped that they would somehow manifest in that very second.

Monroe turned wide-eyed to Nick and looked like Nick had just offered him $1,000,000. Nick definitely could get used to that. His heart fluttered. "Really?"

"Oh.. yeah, totally! I really love this whole... individual style." Individual style? God, how did Monroe believe a word coming out of his mouth?

"Thanks, man. It means a lot. Like you don't even understand." Monroe had this content smile on his face. Was he trying to kill Nick? Why did his smile have this affect on him?

"Here's your coffee, uh.."

"Nick, Nick Burkhardt. And this is Hank Griffin."

"Do you always introduce yourself with your full name?" Monroe laughed at him.

"Yeah, I guess it's a cop thing." He smiled bashfully.

"Wait, waitwaitwait. You guys are cops?!" He looked awed.

"Uh, yeah, on our break." Hank seemed to love this new found attention, sticking his chest out. Oh, Nick was so going to bully him for this later.

"Awesome. Here, enjoy."

"Thanks. How much?" Nick fumbled to get his wallet out.

"No charge." Nick looked blankly at Monroe. "No seriously. I've only had a few customers, but most don't bother to say one word other than their order. Kind of gets me down some times. So enjoy. On me. And thanks." Lord give him strength, Nick was about to jump over the counter and hug the life out of him.

"Hey, no, thank you, Monroe. And, hey, you never know, maybe I'll drop in again tomorrow." Nick smiled at him.

"I'll hold you to that." Monroe said with a raised eyebrow and a playful smile. 

Hank had to drag Nick away to a table.

X

They left the coffee shop after Nick shouted an obnoxious and loud goodbye to Monroe in the back, who shouted an equally enthusiastic goodbye back to them. Nick had a stupid grin on his face all the way back to the precinct, and all through the rest of the day. Hank would have taken the shit out of him for it but he hadn't seen Nick this happy since he got dumped by Juliette. For his boss.

Nick couldn't get to the coffee shop the next day so he showed up the day after, only to find a young, pretty woman leaning on the counter reading her book, instead of Monroe. He couldn't lie, he was extremely disappointed. She looked up at him and smiled sweetly. "Hi there. What can I get for you today?"

"Coffee, please. Black."

"Coming right up." She marked her place and went about making Nick's drink.

"So, uh, is Monroe around?" Maybe he was just in the back.

"Uh no, sorry. Today is his day off. I'll tell him you stopped by though." She smiled to him.

An awkward silence fell upon them and Nick shuffled uncomfortably. "So how did you find this quirky little shop?" She asked him. Nick thanked the lord above for a conversation topic.

"A friend forced me in. I take it you're Rosalee?" she did call it quirky, after all.

"I take it Monroe's been blabbing about me. Good things I hope?"

"Oh, the best." He smiled at her.

"That's $1.70 please." That couldn't be right.

"$1.70? Are you sure? Most places charge 3 times that." What was with the pricing in this place? First it's free, then super cheap?

"It's usually $2.00 but you seem like a nice guy. Monroe likes to gift people who take the time to be courteous to his staff. So do I." What? Even $2.00 is ridiculous. How did this place expect to last?

"Here you go." He dumped some change in her hand and shuffled quickly away to a table.

Rosalee checked the change in her hand. $5.30. "Um, sir? Are you doing this on purpose?"

"Oh 100%. Keep the change." He smiled over at her. She huffed back at him.

"It's Nick, by the way." He added as an after thought. 

"Nice to meet you, Nick."

X

"Morning, Monroe." Rosalee greeted him with a kiss on the cheek.

"Good morning, Rosalee!" He leaned into her. "How was yesterday without me?" he teased.

"Torture," she sighed. "Having to deal with all 3 customers without you!" she dramatically leaned against him.

"Oh shut your mouth or I'll fire you." he joked.

"I'd like to see you try." she winked at him.

He got about setting up the coffee bar and officially opened up. It was nice on the days Rosalee was there with him. Business was so slow that they could cope with only one of them, but the day dragged terribly when he was alone. He really did appreciate her. 

Surprisingly, immediately he managed to gain a regular. It was a middle-aged man who always turned up about 10 minutes after they opened in search of anything remotely coffee related to get him through the morning. He told Monroe he only came to the shop because it was close to his house and stayed because it was cheap. Monroe didn't mind. It was $2.30 more than he would make otherwise.

"Oh, by the way, a guy came in here asking for you yesterday." Rosalee prodded his side. 

"Oh, really?" he responded disinterestedly. They were probably looking for the wrong person. 

"Yeah. His name is Nick." Monroe's head whipped towards her. Oh. He felt stupid now. He got so disappointed when he didn't show up when he said he would. Did he get the day wrong? Did Nick? Did it even matter?

"Oh, that's, uh, that's nice." He cleared his throat, trying to divert from his obvious attempt to act casual.

"Just... nice?" Rosalee quizzed.

"Yeah. Nice." It was a lot more than nice. Monroe liked the guy, liked him a lot. Who else would lie and pretend they liked the look of the shop so blatantly just to cheer him up?

"Well, he seemed pretty bummed that you weren't around. I thought that was quite nice." She sauntered into the back.

X

Nick managed to convince Hank to go back to the coffee shop with him. And by convinced he means bribing him with Burgerville. After last time, he needed Hank to talk to Rosalee if she was there. It was way too awkward. But he needed to see if Monroe was there. Oh, God, was he turning into a stalker?

Hank stepped in first with Nick trailing behind him. Rosalee smiled warmly at the pair. "Hey, Nick! Good to see you again. Who's your friend?"

"Hey, Rosalee. This is my partner Hank. Hank, Rosalee. Rosalee, Detective Hank Griffin." he gestured vaguely between them.

"Ah, a detective? I didn't know you guys were cops." Once again Hank beamed at the recognition. Nick added it to the mental blackmail list.

"Black coffee for you, right?" Nick nodded. "And for you?" Rosalee turned to Hank.

"Caramel latte, please." Nick stared at him. "What? I have a sweet tooth!"

Rosalee laughed at the pair. "Coming right up."

Nick was so busy making fun of Hank he didn't see Rosalee sneak into the back to inform Monroe of their newest customers. He did however hear the scraping of a chair flying across the floor and someone run clumsily towards the front. 

"H-hey, guys! Fancy seeing you here!" Monroe tried, and failed, to regain his composure. 

Nick didn't even bother to hide the smile that covered his face. "Hey, Monroe! Sorry I missed you the other day, I had a job downtown, you know?"

Monroe waved him off "Nah, don't worry about it. Duty calls, right?" his smile never faltered. Nick's heart fluttered again.

"On the house." Rosalee said, placing their drinks on the counter. Nick went to protest but she fixed him with a look and he was quite frankly too scared to disagree with her. They gave their thanks and headed to a table in the back. No one else was in the shop.

"Damn, a place like this should be full of customers. Those two are the nicest guys ever. If not for the coffee they should come for the service." Nick mused to Hank. Hank just smirked at him. "What?" he asked, pissed. 

"Just ask him out for God's sake." Nick choked on his drink.

"Excuse me?!"

"It's obvious you like him, and he likes you. So ask him out!"

"Look, I don't think that's such a good idea..." his mind ran to Juliette.

"It's been ages since Juliette screwed you over, alright? Let go and live a little! He seems worth it." Hank nudged him across the table.

"Alright, fine! I'll ask him! Only if you shut up!" Hank flat out laughed in his face.

"It's a deal."


	2. Chapter 2

Hank turned up to the peculiar coffee shop alone the next day; Nick was caught up in a performance review with the boss. Hank noted he always seemed to get an outstanding review, which definitely had nothing to do with Renard stealing the love of his life at all.

"Mornin', Monroe."

"Hey, Detective Griffin! What can I get for you today?" Damn, this guy was a puppy! He was always so happy.

"Please, call me Hank." He tried to hide the smile that took over his face at the 'cop-calling' as his partner called it. Nick would never know that he was right about that. "Surprise me."

"Your trust flatters me." Monroe said with a smirk. Would he regret this? Too late now.

"So, how's business been?" Hank leaned against the counter. By the looks of it, very slow.

"Not too bad, it's still very quiet, but I had 4 customers this morning alone!" This guy looked like the Queen of England herself had walked in. Hank's heart swelled for the guy. 'He's just trying to make a living like the rest of us, and a guy as good as him definitely deserves more than 4 customers a day. Maybe I can convince the guys at the precinct to switch shops?' He mulled it over in his head.

A takeaway cup appeared on the counter before him. "If you trust me, you won't ask what it is." Monroe smiled innocently.

"I don't think I want to know." Hank laughed. He chucked a $10 bill on the counter and ignored Monroe attempting to throw it back at him. As he went to leave the shop he looked over his shoulder one last time. "Oh, and just so you know, Nick will be here tomorrow." He didn't need to stay to see the bright beam on Monroe's face. 

X

"I told Monroe you'll stop by tomorrow." Hank said in place of a greeting.

"You what?!" Oh. Oh no. This was bad. He had a plan in his head and it involved at least a week of mental preparation before he saw Monroe again. Maybe even two. Hell, he should probably take holiday for a month and come back tanned and toned from workouts on the beach. Although knowing Nick's luck he would come back burned and broken after making a fool of himself. Would Monroe find that funny? Cute? Or would he think that he's an idiot and turn him down? Could he come back from that?

"Nick!" The detective jerked his head towards his partner. By the look on his face, he'd been trying to get his attention for a while. "Look, you don't have to do anything if you don't want, but don't hold yourself back because you're still hung up on what Juliette did. They are two different people. Even you can see that. Don't waste this, because a guy like that will get snatched up before you know it. Hell, I'll do it if you don't pick up your game." Nick thought for a second. It's true. Monroe wasn't Juliette. He was sweet, charming and downright adorable. But other than that...

"Hank, I hardly know the guy!" Nick started to worry he was getting in too deep too fast.

"Then get to know him!" Hank said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Maybe it was. "Here, why don't you take him on a date and just talk. No pressure, you don't have to do anything, just talk to him. And by the end of the night, you'll have your answer." Trust Hank to be the voice of reason. 

"Yeah... I can do that." Hank grunted in agreement. "What coffee did you get this time?" Nick inquired.

"No idea." Hank smiled to himself. Nick was slightly confused.

X

'In. Out. In. Out. You can do this, Nick.' Mentally preparing himself, Nick attempted to steady his breathing before pushing open the coffee shop door. The sound of clocks hit him immediately.

"Hey, Nick. Black coffee?" Monroe's usually bright smile seemed sheepish today. It was so cute. Nick rubbed his hand over his face to hide his blush.

"Please. So, is Rosalee here?" Nick shuffled back and forth on his feet. He noticed an elderly looking man reading a newspaper in the corner. 'The one time I don't want anyone else here!' He almost talked himself out of it.

"Nope, it's just me today I'm afraid." Monroe turned away to start the coffee making process.

"No no no that's not what I meant! I mean... I was just... Ahem, sorry." Nick looked down at his feet. God, how had he already messed this up?

He heard Monroe laugh. "Don't beat yourself up man, it's fine. I know what you meant. I think." Nick smiled back at him. Holding his gaze, he swore he could see a slight blush rising on Monroe's cheeks. He definitely liked that. "So, any interesting cop stuff happen?" The old man in the corner slightly lowered his newspaper and cocked his head towards the two.

"Sorry, anything too interesting is always confidential." He punctuated each word with a nod towards the old man. The old man didn't let up. Monroe shook his head, laughing. 

"Ah, the glamorous life of Portland PD." Nick noted Monroe seemed to be taking a lot longer than usual to make his coffee. Interesting.

"So, how's business?" Monroe chuckled heartily. It was a warm sound.

"You and Hank are partners, alright. Think you might need to spend some time apart." Nick mocked shock.

"How could you suggest such a terrible thing?" He held his hand over his heart.

"Just saying, you might wanna spend time with someone else occasionally." Oh, that was definitely flirting. 'Come on, Nick. Don't mess this up! He's literally set this up perfectly for you!'

"I think I can manage that. Might need a little help though." Was that too obvious? It had been a long time since Nick had to flirt with a purpose. He held his breath.

"I might have someone in mind." Monroe smirked once again, and God, if it was anyone else saying those words he would've cringed so hard at the cheesy lines but it was Monroe so it was perfect. 'Nick! Wait until you know the guy!' he berated himself. But that was getting harder and harder with every little conversation they had.

"Tomorrow. 7 'o' clock. Where will you be?" He probably should've been less aggressive. Just as he was about to amend his choice of words Monroe lit up like Nick had never seen before. It practically blinded him. Nick did not mind at all. 

"Where did you have in mind?"

X

"You what?!" Rosalee squealed at him.

"I've got a date with Nick." Monroe could hardly believe it himself. He thanked the stars above once again that he took the risk and bought the run down shop. Everything was turning out perfectly.

"I can't believe it! I mean I can, but... So soon! It's- What are you going to wear?!" Rosalee had a look of fierce determination on her face. 

"How should I know? It's not until tomorrow." Rosalee gasped.

"That soon?! Monroe, how are you not freaking out right now?" He fixed her with a stare and she cleared her throat. "Right, sorry. I'm calm, I'm calm. Seriously though, what will you wear?"

"Uh, I was hoping you would help me with that?" Monroe scratched the back of his neck. Rosalee always said she would helped him with whatever he needed, but he never liked taking her up on the offer. She constantly gave him hell for it.

"What the hell are you talking about, of course I will! Meet me 3 hours before the date. We'll get you looking killer by the time he picks you up!"

"Hey, wait a minute! What about the shop?" Monroe frowned at her. Business was slow as it was, leaving the shop early probably wouldn't help.

"Oh, shush. We never get customers later than 2 p.m. so don't get your panties in a twist. Your house. 3 hours before. Deal?"

Monroe sighed, "Deal."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really enjoying writing this! Let me know what you think! :)

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure whether to add Hank/Rosalee or whether to leave them as bros. Anyway, had a lot of fun with this! Chapter 2 is already in the making :)


End file.
